It's all about efficiencies

What was done in the East has been done in the West.

The massive cuts implemented this week at Singleton's three L.A. papers - the Daily News, the Breeze and the Press-Telegram - have paved the way for structural changes long sought by Denver.

It's about knocking down walls as much as its about saving money.

Rather than have three papers with full staffs that look to protect their turf, Singleton wants a partnership that operates as a single business entity. If you want to see how it works, look no further than the San Gabriel Valley, where the Star-News, Tribune, Whittier Daily News share revenues, a copy desk, a reporting staff, an executive editor... and just about everything else you can imagine.

In the wake of these cuts, I imagine there will be a further mixing of editorial staff (and probably an overall reduction of editors), more common pages, a centralized copy desk, and the eventual elimination of anything and everything considered to be redundant.

The merger should also do away with the unions, allowing for cheaper hires over the long term.

Resentments will run deep and newsroom morale will drop, but anyone not with the program will be welcome to leave.

To put it another way: These cuts are not a hasty response to a sudden drop in revenues. These cuts are part of a larger reorganization plan that was simply waiting for a downturn to be implemented.